Order in Chaos
by Settiai
Summary: Looking back, Teyla should have known better than to trust the men on her team to behave during the ceremony.


Title: Order in Chaos

Author: Settiai

Disclaimer: "Stargate Atlantis" and other related characters belong to their copyright holders. No infringement is intended. This story, such as it is, was written as a sign of respect and love for the characters, the series, and their creator. I claim no ownership of the aforementioned series and characters.

Rating: PG

Summary: Looking back, Teyla should have known better than to trust the men on her team to behave during the ceremony.

Feedback: Comments and helpful criticisms are always appreciated.

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"_There seems to be a kind of order in the universe, in the movement of the stars and the turning of the earth and the changing of the seasons, and even in the cycle of human life. But human life itself is almost pure chaos. Everyone takes his stance, asserts his own rights and feelings, mistaking the motives of others, and his own."_

- Katherine Anne Porter -

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Teyla had been aware of the unchanging rules of the universe since she was barely more than a child. No matter which planet she was on, there were some aspects of life that never changed. Life was precious, yet it could be destroyed in an instant by so many things—not all of them related to the Wraith. Day always turned into night, and night always turned into day, though the amount of time each lasted varied from world to world. A leader must always be willing to do whatever is necessary for the good of his or her people, no matter what the cost.

There was no true way to fight the Wraith.

These things were fixed, rules that everyone knew. At least, that was what she had believed until she met the humans from Earth.

She shook her head ruefully as she ducked behind a nearby tree, barely hiding herself before the guard standing in front of the small hut looked in her direction. It had been barely six months since she had first met the humans who now called Atlantis their home, but it seemed much longer. Teyla hadn't known what to think about them at first, with their strange ways and lack of knowledge; even now, at times, she did not know what to think. She was learning to trust them, however, just as she was beginning to appreciate their ways, no matter how peculiar they still seemed at times.

Admittedly, she sometimes missed the set order the universe had once followed. Especially at times like this, when Major Sheppard and her other teammates seemed to purposely make their lives—and hers—as difficult as possible.

Teyla peered around the tree again, making certain that the guard wasn't looking her way, before she quickly slipped behind a nearby bush. She didn't believe that the Ilontians would actually wound the three men, but she wanted to be certain of that fact before she attempted to convince their leader that no harm had been meant.

"_I will warn you now, Major—the Ilontians will perform several rituals before they agree to discuss trade with you," Teyla said as they stepped out on the other side of the Stargate. "They take them quite seriously."_

_At that, Sheppard turned and gave her a puzzled look. "You've already mentioned that three times," he pointed out. "Any reason?"_

_Teyla merely raised an eyebrow._

_Behind them, Ford chuckled. "I think she remembers that incident with the Talonins, sir."_

_McKay stopped for just a second, a puzzled look on his face. "Were those the ones who tried to get him to marry Teyla?" he asked. "Or were they the ones who worshipped the dinosaur-like creatures and wanted to feed us to them?"_

_Sheppard shot both of them dark looks before turning toward Teyla and giving her a reassuring wink. "Don't worry, Teyla, we'll be on our best behavior."_

Teyla shook her head, an exasperated sigh escaping her lips before she could help it.

She had been worried about the three men losing interest in the rituals and letting their minds wander, as they had on several previous occasions. In the hope that she would be able to discreetly elbow either of them if it became obvious they were not paying attention, she had seated herself between Sheppard and McKay. Ford had been sitting on the other side of the major, out of her reach, but she trusted the younger man to at least appear to be focused on the rituals going on.

It turned out that she needn't have bothered.

_Teyla resisted the urge to grab the major by the ear and shake him like a small child as she watched the Ilontians lead her three teammates away. It had caught her by surprise when they had reacted to the priestess's clothing—or lack thereof, as the case may be—and she hadn't had time to remind them that looking away was considered a great offense._

_As she watched them be led off, she let her mind wander to a few of the outfits that several of the female scientists on Atlantis sometimes wore when they were not on duty. Their clothing showed even more skin than the priestess's—though she did admit that certain areas of their anatomy remained covered while that of the priestess had not._

"Earth must be an odd planet indeed," she muttered under her breath.

Teyla slipped from her hiding spot and stealthily made her way to another bush, this one slightly smaller than the one she had previously been hiding behind. Once there, she settled back for a moment and listened to the sound of voices coming from inside the hut. Despite the distance between her position and the building, she was able to hear what was being said quite clearly.

"Why are we still here?" McKay was asking, the panic in his voice fairly obvious. "They're probably planning on killing us, and we're not even trying to escape."

Someone cleared his throat, and it took her a moment to place that it was Sheppard. "For the last time, McKay, they're not going to kill us," he said. "Teyla's probably already gotten in touch with Atlantis and gotten back-up."

"Actually, considering this is all just a big misunderstanding, Teyla's probably trying to talk their leader into just letting us go before she goes for back-up," Ford said, his voice sounding more than a little exasperated. Then he seemed to realize who he was talking to, and he added a quick, sheepish, "sir" at the end.

There was silence for a moment before Sheppard let out a fairly loud "hmm."

"Hmm?" Rodney repeated. "What do you mean by 'hmm'?"

"I mean that Ford's probably right."

Shaking her head at their antics but secretly pleased that she had been correct in assuming that nothing had been done to them, Teyla allowed herself a small smile before she slipped back the way she had come. The Ilontian leader was most likely over his anger by now, and she was confident that it would not take much persuasion on her part to convince him that it had been nothing more than a misunderstanding.

Despite the chaos that her new friends brought about from time to time, some things in the universe remained constant. She knew that with certainty.


End file.
